Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates generally to ratchets, and more particularly, to a positive stop ratchet mechanism for controlling pawl position in a ratchet wrench.
Description of Related Art
The present disclosure relates to ratchet wrenches. Ratchet wrenches typically embody a handle portion and a head portion, wherein the head portion houses a ratchet mechanism capable of rotating about an axis. A ratchet may be manually operated or motor driven. In a motor driven ratchet, a motor may be positioned in the handle portion to operate the ratchet mechanism.
A ratchet drive may be positioned within the head portion of the ratchet and includes a drive body onto which sockets may be engaged or attached. The drive body may be a square drive or formed of any geometric configuration for receiving or engaging the socket. The ratchet drive may further include a gear capable of reciprocating within the head portion in response to the manual or motor driven operation of the ratchet. The drive body is formed on or attached to the gear. The gear may comprise outwardly facing gear cogs, teeth, serrations, other engagement portions, herein referred to generally as gear teeth. Additionally, the ratchet mechanism may include one or more pawls positioned within the head and capable of engaging the gear teeth and driving the gear.
To engage the pawl with the gear teeth a pusher and spring may be driven to and from the pawl by a lever. In current designs, the pusher moves across a face of the pawl and the position of the pawl is maintained by the pusher. However, a pusher may become disengaged from the face of the pawl, overextend, and become lodged between the pawl and the inside of the ratchet head. When this occurs, the pawl and the ratchet drive are no longer functional. Therefore, an improved ratchet design is needed to prevent the pusher from disengaging and becoming lodged between the pawl and the inside of the head portion.
FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art lever bore 1130 associated with a ratchet wrench. Specifically, the prior art lever bore 1130 has curved sidewalls 1150, formed by the circumference of a cylindrical bore and sometimes referred to as sidewalls having a crescent moon shape. The curved sidewalls 1150 can result in the problem of the pusher disengaging and becoming lodged as noted, making the ratchet non-functional.